Power cables for active speakers - do they matter?

[Bwaslo]

We all believe you heard a difference, we've all been there. My own favorite story is when we were two experienced speaker designers who heard the same effect after some digital crossover changes. The only problem was that we did the changes on a different preset than the one we were listening to. So the sound was exactly the same all along.

Have a look here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_bias

Done something similar decades ago when comparing the "sound" of different capacitors by connecting them via a set of clipleads. All present agreed which sounded better and what each sounded like. Only later to discover the other end of one of the clipleads wasn't clipped to anything.

 

[theREALdotnet]

with occasional exceptions...

View attachment 478378

Ouch! The perfect gift for someone you hate

 

[Philbo King]

If the speakers are, say, 1500 Watt and the power cord is 18 Gauge, it could indeed make difference in power delivery.

 

[Sir Sanders Zingmore]

So, @Avp1 , simple question. Are you going to do a proper blind listening test?

 

[RexrothPigeon]

So, @Avp1 , simple question. Are you going to do a proper blind listening test?

No, he's just going to buy a bunch of new stuff based on a shared hallucination

 

[Rick63]

If you think cables make a difference, wait until you try cable risers!




















LOL.

 

[Buckeye Amps]

I think once OP started referring to areas of scientific expertise as "an art", that should have been the tell for where this thread was going.

 

[Keith_W]

You are not the only one who has heard differences in power cords, or heard differences where there should be none. I too, have heard those differences. And I can tell you, the experience was really quite convincing. I could have sworn till I was blue in the face that the difference was real. But once the swap is done a few times, I became less confident. And under blind conditions, the difference went away.

I can also tell you that I sometimes can not hear differences where I know there should be one. For example, I have different DSP settings on my system, and there are measurable differences between the settings. I have two speakers and two subs, and I retuned my DSP asking the question: does it sound better if I give more bass to the speakers, or more bass to the subs? Both were equalized to the same target, and I sat down to listen. I honestly don't think I could pass a blind test - the difference, if there is one, is extremely subtle! Lesson: your hearing isn't as reliable as you think.

I also know what happens next. After your short and unreliable auditory memory failed you, you come on to forums to say you heard a difference in power cords. Depending on the forum, your view is either accepted or rejected. If the former happens, it is affirmation - you go away believing that audible differences exist. If the latter happens, your defensiveness kicks in. It becomes difficult to back down. I know, because I have been there. In fact, I think a lot of us have probably been there, but maybe some of us are unwilling to admit it. It's okay, we make mistakes, we say silly things on forums. Best to put ego away, be humble, and be honest with yourself. In the long run, it's better for you, and people respect you more when they see you are willing to admit mistakes and learn.

 

[mhardy6647]

No, he's just going to buy a bunch of new stuff based on a shared hallucination

Folie à Deux

 

[Buckeye Amps]

In the long run, it's better for you, and people respect you more when they see you are willing to admit mistakes and learn.

When I started my PhD, the mantra in our department was "Science is 95% failure". They key is admitting when an experiment or method fails so you can learn from it and keep getting to the truth/correct results EVEN if they go against your starting hypothesis or go against what you initially observed to take you down that path.

 

[mhardy6647]

When I started my PhD, the mantra in our department was "Science is 95% failure". They key is admitting when an experiment or method fails so you can learn from it and keep getting to the truth/correct results EVEN if they go against your starting hypothesis or go against what you initially observed to take you down that path.

Funny you mention that. I remember with surprising vividness, a chat we as entering grad students (1980) had with the then-chair of the Department, William F. Harrington. Harrington, a physical biochemist of some repute (NAS member) was a pretty stiff and formal guy, but he was surprisingly earnest and affable as he told us (this is a paraphrase, but is the gist of what I remember).

95% of everything you do in the lab is going to lead nowhere. The trick is to harvest the satisfaction from the 5% of experiments that do lead to something interesting to get you through all of the rest

I was actually pretty lucky and worked on several things that were ripe for the picking as a student and then as a postdoc.
Chance favors the prepared mind, as Pasteur said (more or less... I mean, c'mon, he was French, so it woulda sounded quite a bit different than that!).

 

[lowkeyoperations]

Listening to music is by definition subjective.
If you think spending money on power makes something sound more enjoyable then I say do it.
I think the fact that it doesn’t actually make anything different is irrelevant if you perceive it as improved :lol:

 

[wadude]

No, he's just going to buy a bunch of new stuff based on a shared hallucination

Better to buy a bunch of stuff that causes hallucinations and share it.

 

[theREALdotnet]

If you think cables make a difference, wait until you try cable risers!

I was about to remark that cable tests are invalid unless proper risers are used, but then I remembered that this isn't the humour thread...

 

[JSmith]

If you think spending money on power makes something sound more enjoyable then I say do it.

All good, but at least they should understand it's not really there and not claim there are mystical properties to power cables.

Like this type of misdirection;

...not resolving enough... to possibly capture nuances of sound in my room

JSmith

 

[mhardy6647]

I was about to remark that cable tests are invalid unless proper risers are used, but then I remembered that this isn't the humour thread...

meh. From my perspective, they're all humor threads...

 

[timechaser]

Went through the same process meself. But I was lucky enough to be reading a lot of stuff about electricity, and copper, and wires, and mains and all. Used a popular LLM (with an appropriate prompt to make it sound like a stern teacher). And lo and behold... My C7 connector is rated at 2.5 amps (IEC 60320 rating). Internet says minimum wire gauge for carrying 2.5a is 28awg. A generic C7 mains cable comes with 18awg wire. So guess I am already doing better. And then I came across this - Audioquest NRG-Y2 (SGD 209). It runs a 17 AWG wire which is made from "semi-solid concentric long-gain copper". Apparently the boundaries (snake-skin?) can increase resistance and affect the conductance of electricity (shock / horror).

I did find some applications where the grain structure does make a difference, but those are so far removed from general usage that it's not even worth enumerating. So I rest in peace knowing that there isn't going to be any difference between my cheapskate cable and the oh-so-awesome $200 cable.

 

[respice finem]

There are some differences, but not where the most people think they are.
Like with an XLR cable, some plugs may break if "mistreated", or the cable itself if repeatedly stepped on etc.

I've once (2-3 decades ago) bought a "heavy duty" headphone cable extension for my mother. It runs under a carpet and she steps on it many times a day. No problems. Not every cable would have "survived" this. IDK what brand it is, nothing fancy or expensive.

 

[Juhazi]

Better to buy a bunch of stuff that causes hallucinations and share it.

Audiophile hallucinogens are legal and healthier but sadly more expensive than alcohol!

 

[respice finem]

But they last longer than alcohol